Tales of Sakura
by REdNitErivEr
Summary: I'm really bad at summaries... Naruto has just left to train with Jiraiya. This is Sakura's training.
1. Chapter 1

I don't own Naruto!! If I did, I'd be very very very rich.  
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"You have very pretty hair..." a passerby pointed, blushing.  
Sakura involuntarily brushed a hand through her hair.  
"Thank you." She smiled.

Sakura strolled down the streets of Konoha for the last time. It was a brilliant Sunday afternoon, with barely any clouds overhead. The wind was tossing and turning leaves in a playful tussle. She expected to hear Naruto training in the forest nearby, but he was already on his journey with Jiraiya. The scene was perfect: the beautiful sky, the birds were singing, and the air had a lovely mix of ashes.

The Chunnin there were heaving large amounts of water over the fire. Those who did not know any water techniques were practicing their chakra control by carrying enormous pots of water to and from the well. The crowd stood by as amazed spectators in a play, ready to applaud the heroes or weep at unexpected losses. Sakura pushed and shoved through these people. Angry mutterings and curses became apparent, but her ears didn't seem to function as it should be.

The heat radiating from the house was intense; she could hardly breathe from the pressure around her, and the smog made it near suffocating. Her chest was on fire as well, and as Sakura fought to maintain even breaths, the adrenaline surging through her screamed hyperventilation. Upon seeing Sakura amongst the crowd, the medical ninjas began to speed up their work, until she caught sight of them. Shaking, she rushed towards the ambulance and tore the shroud that tried so hard to protect its person from the fire. Or from prying eyes. Flesh had been burned. The skin was charred. And the bed itself had a tint of yellow where the fat had melted off the body in disgust. Sakura's mother was in a rigid position, joints refusing to bend back into normalcy. In her left hand was a blackened key, that was pushed into the air as if it was freed from some long dreary purgatory.

"Haruno Sakura."  
Sakura opened her eyes slowly, adjusting to the light. Around her bed was Tsunade, Shizune, and an old man who she was sure that she had never met. Even so, she felt obligated to hate him.  
"Haruno Sakura," the man repeated, shifting his gown to lean forward and see his cornered prey easier. "I am a representative of the feudal lord from the Country of Light," (He straightened up as he said this, trying to appear taller) "And I believe you are the daughter of two prisoners we have been trying to capture for decades."


	2. Chapter 2

I don't own Naruto!! If I did, I'd be very very very rich.  
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"Haruno Sakura."  
_Yes...  
_"Haruno Sakura." the voice grew irritated.

_That's me._

Sakura opened her eyes slowly, adjusting to the light. Around her bed was Tsunade, Shizune, and an old man who she was sure that she had never met. Even so, she felt obligated to hate him. Everything was in a daze... everything seemed a lot further than it really was. Like the voice. Like the group around her.

"Haruno Sakura," the man repeated, shifting his gown to lean forward and see his cornered prey easier. "I am a representative of the feudal lord from the Country of Light," (He straightened up as he said this, trying to appear taller) "And I believe you are the daughter of two prisoners we have been trying to capture for decades."

Sakura sat up in her bed. The infirmary was deathy quiet; all motion seemed to have stopped, anticipating what would be said next.

Sakura kept her eyes down at her hands, rolling them into fists, then relaxing them.

The man cleared his throat, his wrinkles evident in the light. Her reaction, or lack thereof, was not part of his agenda. "As I was saying, there were two renegade ninjas causing chaos..."

"Who burned my house?"

"Sakura!" Shizune scolded, exasperated. Tsunade made the slightest twitch. Every fiber in Sakura was shaking. As if the trauma in her life wasn't enough.

"... And government soldiers managed to capture their child," the foreigner continued with a touch of annoyance. "In an attempt to forever recognize the villians, we have put a permanent mark on the babe." He reached down to stroke Sakura's hair.

Sakura's eyes sank its teeth into the predator's hand. Her face vehemently neutral, her eyes embodied such a distinct wrath and warning that the man closed his hand and brought it carefully back to his side. The mix in his face was a solution of such apprehension and anger that it was only paralleled by a reaction from no less than a monster.

Turning to Tsunade, he straightened up hissed "She is obviously in distress. We'll apprehend her tomorrow for questioning, imprisonment, and judgement." They began to leave.

"Tsunade-sama!"

In the heat of the moment, the most you can do is conjure up the least croaked, least tearful voice you have. Tsunade turned back to look at her apprentice. The warmth she usually saved for Sakura was gone. Tsunade took a deep breath.

"Sakura, I have nothing to hide from."

Adjusting her backpack, Sakura looked out to the moonlit road. The wind was whistling in her ear, muttering Sasuke's final words to her. Looking back, the faces of the past Hokages all seemed to frown in the silent night. Only through survival was there hope. Her hands shook from readiness, but her feet would not move.

"Haruno Sakura?"

She gasped, her heart leaping into her throat. "Who's there?" Sakura whispered. She would have called out, but her voice would not respond. Her heartbeat was already pulsing in her ears. She strained her eyes in the bitter darkness. She couldn't hear anything from the vivacious heartbeat's thumping. But she had to hear. She had to see. There was something out there.

In a rush of leaves, a dark figure landed in front of her. Standing up, it walked into the light. The face was rough with scars but his small smile dispelled the anxiety gnawing at her.

"I'm Neito Soiyada," He took an elegant bow. "I'm a friend of your late parents, and in a sense, your godfather."

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YAY koffee break!! x but you're paying, right?

evidently opening and closing your hand too much will cause arthitis. Or sumthing. Don't do it. Please.

oh wow! Soiyada! like yoda!! but not!!


End file.
